Protective headgear

ABSTRACT

An inflatable member dimensioned to be mounted to the inside curvature of a rigid shell, and to be preferably inserted within a slightly oversized foamed elastomeric envelope which is bonded to the inside curvature of said shell. Air fill means are provided so that the user can inflate the member by introducing air to a plurality of communicating compartments within the member, and thereby both size the head gear assembly and cushion the head of the user against shocks.

United States Patent Conroy et a]. 14 1 June 13, 1972 [54] PROTECTIVEHEADGEAR 3,551,911 1/1971 121 Inventors: Robert 1; Conroy, 30s SouthClifion, Park 5 132:

Ridge, 111. 60068; John H. lhuger, 139 J Lee Boulevard, Hillside, 111.62050 21803-015 8/195 3,039,109 6/1962 1 1 F11: Jilly 1970 3,168,3822/1965 1 AWL No 54,513 3.221.340 12/1965 3,440,660 4/1969 Related US.Application Data Primary Examiner-James R. Boler 63 Contmuanon-mart ofSer. No. 12,805, Feb. 19, I 1 I970, abandone Atiomey-Dormmk, Knechtel &Godula [s21 u.s.c1. ..2/3R [571 ABSTRACT [51] Int. Cl. ..A4Zb 3/00 An ifl bl member dimensioned to be moumcd to the [58] Field of Search ..2/3,S, 6, 174, 177, 202, 195, side curvature f a rigid she", and to be r fbl inserted 2/68 3; 161/127; 267/] 1 l 18; 9/346 within a slightlyoversized foamed elastomeric envelope which is bonded to the insidecurvature of said shell. Air fill means [56] Rem-mm and are provided sothat the user can inflate the member by in- UNXTED STATES PATENTStrodueing air to a plurality of communicating compartments within themember, and thereby both size the head gear as- 2,759,186 8/1956 Dye Rembly and cushion the head ofthe usg against shocks 2,033,802 3/1936Abram.. 2/3 R 16 China, 20 Drawing Figures PATENTEUJUH 1 I972 3, 668 704SHEET 2 or e INVENTORS Robe/f E Conroy y John H. Hauger ATTYS.

PATENTEDJun 13 I972 SHEET 30F 6 Inn:-

FIG. 12

FIGJO INVENTORS Robert E. Conroy John H Hauger W fifml/g/fm llI/I/I/I/I/ FIG. 13

ATTYS PATENTEDJUN 13 I972 33. 668. 704

l567 I150 I58 ll 1! u H INVENTORS Robert E. Canroy John H. Hauger ATTYSPATENTEDJUH 13 I972 3 668 704 sum 5 or s FIG. 16

IN VENTORS Robert E. Conroy BY John H. Hauger flax, A4414! & W

ATT'YS PATENTEDJuu 13 I972 SHEET 6 OF 6 INVENTORS Robert E: Conr Jhn H.Ha e BY 0 ugr PROTECTIVE I-IEADGEAR This application is acontinuation-in-Part of U.S. Ser. No. 12,805, filed Feb. 19, I970, nowabandoned by the same applicants.

This invention relates to means which provide improved protectiveheadgear, and particularly relates to an inflatable member assemblywhich is used to advantage on the inside of a substantially rigid headshell to both size the shell to the head of the user and to protect theuser.

Protective headgear units and assemblies, for the most part, aredesigned to protect the head principally by means of a rigid shell whichmay be plastic or metal. While such "helmet" or hard hats" do provide ahard, protective barrier, problems still remain. Such problems generallyare concerned with providing a good secure fit of the gear on the headof the user, and additionally protecting the head of the user againstblows, shocks, or the like.

This problem arises with greater frequency in the ever spreading area ofsport activities. In particular, the problem, on too many occasions, hasdire consequences in football and hockey activities. A greater concernarises because of the ever increasing popularity of these sports amongyounger children.

Various cushioning means have been mounted within hard, rigid shellswhich are intended to operate as protective head gear. For example,elastomeric blocks or cushions have been bonded to the inside curvatureof the shell, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,248,738. Certainsophisticated cushioning techniques have been developed wherein liquidfilled, as well as gas filled, liners are employed within the shells,see U.S. Pat. No. 3,039,109. Other air-filled liners have involvedspecial designing so that communicating conduits form a close fittingcrown, or the like between the head and the shell. Such devices havebeen shown in patents such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,] 86,004, 3,462,763 and3,254,883.

It is one principal object of the present invention to provide animproved air-filled liner for a rigid shell which may be quickly mountedwithin the shell, which is designed to provide efiective sizing of theshell to the head and cushioning against shocks, and which may bequickly air-filled to obtain substantially uniform distention for thedesired purposes.

It is yet another important object of the invention to provide animproved inflatable member, provided together with a foamed elastomericoversized envelope, with means so that the user can quickly and reliablyinflate said member to provide dependable and efficient sizing andcushioning when said member and envelope are mounted within a shell wornby the user.

Still another important object of the invention is to provide aprotective head gear assembly in which is mounted the improvedinflatable member contained within the foamed elastomeric envelope,which envelope is fastened to the inside of the shell by a plurality ofbonding points.

It is still another important object of the present invention to providean inflatable member which can be used together with conventional helmetsuspension means to improve cushioning against shocks, as well as toprovide desired sizing.

A yet another important object of the present invention is to provide aninflatable member which has supports for a suspension mounting, as wellas providing the aforesaid cushioning and sizing.

It is yet another important object of the invention to provide aninflatable member of improved design for use with a foamed elastomericenvelope when mounted to the inside curvature of a rigid shell, saidimproved liner having a plurality of communicating compartments toprovide substantially uniform inflation with smaller volumes of air; andwhich inflation is further effected through a fixed elongated air-filltube which is easily engageable by the user's mouth for inflation whenmounted in the shell worn by the user. One aspect of this object is thefurther provision of release means to allow the escape of air from theliner when sever shocks are imparted to thereby improve protection tothe head of the user.

The foregoing objects are attained together with still other objectswhich will occur to practitioners from time to time by the presentinvention. The features of this invention are now shown in detail in thefollowing disclosure which includes drawing wherein:

FIG. I is a side elevational view ofan member with air-fill means;

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view, which may be considered as takenalong the longitudinal axis of the horizontal or vertical armsofthemembersshowninFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of a foamed elastomeric envelope inwhich the member of FIG. I may be inserted;

FIG. disatopplanviewoftheenvelopeshowninFlG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view, on a reduced scale, showing theinflatable member of FIG. I, in phantom, seated within the envelopeshown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a bottom plan view of the sizing and cushioning assemblymounted inside a hard, rigid protective shell, said as- ;mbly being themember of FIG. I inserted in the envelope of FIG. 7 is the sideelevational view of the shell with mounted cushioning and sidng assemblypositioned on a user's head, and being actuated by the user to eflectsizing and cushioning;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the shell with cushioning and sizingassembly therein worn by a user, and with a portion removed toillustrate structures of the assembly, partly in section;

FIG. 9 is a side elevational view of an alternative embodiment of aninflatable member;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view along line 10-10 of FIG. 9;

FIG. I] is a bottom plan view of a helmet having a known suspensionmeans and the inflatable member of FIG. 9 in an elastomeric envelope;

FIG. 12 is a side sectional view of the helmet assembly shown in FIG.11;

FIG. I3 is a portion of a sectional view showing the inflatable member,envelope and helmet, on an enlarged scale;

FIG. 14 is a side elevational view of an alternative embodiment of aninflatable member;

FIG. 15 is a sectional view, on an enlarged scale, of the vertical armof the member shown in FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 is a bottom plan view of a helmet with the inflatable member ofFIG. 15 contained in an elastomeric envelope;

FIG. 17 is a side sectional view of the helmet assembly shown in FIG.16;

FIG. 18 is a partly section view on an enlarged scale, showing a part ofthe inflatable member of FIG. 14 fastened to the shell;

FIG. 19 is a perspective view of the inflatable member of FIG. 14 as itis disposed in a helmet which has been removed for clarity; and

FIG. 20 is a side elevational view of an alternative embodiment of aninflatable member.

Referring first to the view of FIG. 7, the protective headgear showngenerally as 10 is illustrated as the type worn in playing hockey. Theprotective head gear includes a substantially rigid shell 12 which has acrescent shaped ventilating area on each side made up from a number ofventilating holes 14. In the preferred embodiment, the ventilating holesare not obstructed by the sizing and cushioning assembly, showngenerally as 16 in the view of FIG. 6.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, an inflatable T-shaped member is showngenerally as 18, and it is formed of one sidewall 20 and an oppositesidewall 22, both of which conform to said T-shape. The two walls arealfixed to each other alonga continuous peripheral seal line 24. Theperipheral seal may be formed by heat sealing when the T member isformed from preferred thermoplastic material, such as polyvinylchloride.

The vertical arm 25 of the T-member has a plurality of compartmentsdefined by compartment seal lines 26. Such seal lines terminate short ofthe opposite continuous peripheral sealed edges to provide pairedcompartrnental passageways 28. The vertical arm 25 is designed tocontact the medial crown portion of the head when mounted in a helmet orthe inflatable T-shaped like. The horizontal arm 29 of the T-member hasa cushioning and sizing portion on each side of the vertical arm whichis adapted to contact temporal portions of the head on opposite sideswhen said T-member is inside a helmet or the like. The horizontal armhas a plurality of compartment formed by compartmental seal lines 30,and such seal lines are shown extending to one of the peripheral edgesof the horizontal arm while terminating short of the opposite peripheraledge. A communicating air passageway 32 is thereby formed between theend of the seal line 30 and the adjoining peripheral edge or seal. it isseen that seal lines 26 and 30 define air compartments of substantiallyuniform dimensions. The communicating passageways 28, 32 permitintroduced air to move to all the compartments to obtain substantiallyuniform distension of the member with smaller amounts of air than wouldbe required in the absence of such compartments.

in the form illustrated, the horizontal arm has a tapered edge 34 and anopposite tapered bottom edge 35. The tapers decrease towards theopposite ends 36 of the horinontal arm. This tapered configuration ispreferred because the opposite ends of the horizontal arm can then beengaged against the temporal portions of the head above the ears, whenin place,

without crimping, folding, or bunching-over in the limited area of thatpart of the head.

The preferred air-till means for the inflatable member is an elongatedair fill tube 38 having an air discharge end located between the walls20, 22 for inflating the T-member. The opposite end of the air fill tube38 has an air-fill inlet 42 which is closed by means such as a resilientsealing cap 44. The air fill tube 38 is elongated to a sufficientdistance so that the inlet end 42 can be positioned in the mouth of theuser for inflating the member when the liner is installed in the helmetor the like.

in another preferred embodiment, the sealing cap 44 is adapted to beretained on the inlet end up to predetermined pressure levels so thatwhen severe shocks occur, the pressure build-up exceeds thepredetermined level, blows off the cap 44, and thereby allows the air toescape through the inlet end 42. This enhances the shock protection ofthe liner in the helmet by relieving the resistence to severely impartedblows or the like.

The improved practice of the present invention provides that theinflatable member is seated or positioned within a slightly oversizedenvelope. In the illustrated embodiment, a T-shaped envelope is showngenerally as 46. Such an envelope is preferably formed from elastomericmaterial such as foam rubber. The envelope may be formed from twosidewalls, including a head sidewall 48 and an opposite shell sidewall50. The sidewalls are joined by a continuous peripheral seal 52 whichmay be formed by bonding, heat sealing, or the like. The foamedelastomeric sidewalls may have different thicknesses, but it has beenfound particularly useful to select dimensions of about one-eighth inchto about one-quarter inch. The peripheral seal continues around thevertical arm 53, around the bottom and ends of the horizontal arm 54.The seal is interrupted at the top of the horizontal arm to define anopen top 56 which allows insertion and removal of the inflatableT-member 18. In the illustrated form, one of the ends 62 of thehorizontal arm is provided with a cut-out seat 63 for the airfill tube.The elongated air-fill tube 38 is shown seated in the cut-out in theview of FIG. 5. Such view also illustrates how the T-inflatable memberis fully seated within the slightly oversized envelope 46.

The inflatable member and envelope assembly are mounted to the inside ofa rigid, hard shell by means such as bonding the shell sidewall 50 tothe inside of the shell along a plurality of bonding points, such as 64.it is seen, therefore, that one sidewall 50, which forms both thehorizontal and vertical arms, is bonded to the inside shell curvature66. The other sidewall 48 contacts the head of the user.

The use of the inflatable member and the envelope in a hard rigid shellmay be illustrated by reference to the hockey type of helmet shown inFIGS. 6-8. Such a helmet has a bottom,

continuous curvilinear edge 68. The edge has a raaied portion 70 spacedabove the top of the ear, a lowered portion 72 in front of the ear, anda lowered portion 74 behind the ear. The inflatable T-member andenvelope assembly are disposed inside the helmet so that the verticalarrn covers the medial line of the head and extends at least to aboutthe forehead portion. The horizontal arm extends a sufficient distanceso that its opposite ends 62 form only a small gap along the medial lineof the forehead. The envelope may be bonded to the inside curvature 66of the shell 12 as a first step, whereupon the open top 56 will bedirected toward bottom curvilinear edge 68. The inflatable member 18will be inserted by first moving vertical arm 25 through the open topand into the vertical arm 53 of the envelope. The horizontal arm 29 ofthe T-inflatable member will then be seated within the horizontal arm 84of the envelope. The elongated air-fill tube 38 will be positioned inseat 63, and will be available for engagement by the mouth of the useras indicated in FIG. 7.

The user will inflate the T-member 18 to a suflicient degree of comfortuntil the helmet is securely sized and positioned on the head. TheT-member and envelope assembly will correctly and comfortably size ahelmet which has been selected for a near-fit on the head. it will beappreciated that a helmet selection may be made from three basic sisessuch as small," medium" or "large. Once the helmet has been desirablysized and cushioned, the user will close inlet end 42 of the air-filltube 38 by replacing resilient sealing cap 44. The closed air-fill tubemay then be tucked inside the helmet towards the opposite ear, asindicated in the view of FIG. 8.

Another form of the inflatable member is shown in the views of FIGS.9-13. Referring first to the view of FIG. 11, a shell 79 has mountedtherein a conventional suspension cushioning assembly 18. The assemblyincludes a central portion spaced from the inside of this shell, saidcentral portion including an elastomeric core 82 placed within a capsulemade of a top elastomeric skin 84 and a bottom elastomeric skin 86. Thecore has air spaces and is of lighter density than the skins. The bottomelastomeric skin 86 is provided with an air vent 88 so that air canslowly escape from the core through such vents in the recognized mannerfollowing impact.

Bottom skin 86 is shown with a number of aligned pairs of slots 90through which heavy support straps 92 are inserted. Each strap is movedthrough the aligned slots of a pair, and the opposite ends of the strapsare then secured to the shell by fasteners such as strap rivets 94.

The foregoing suspension assembly is known, together with the describedmethod of mounting within the shell. Such a conventional suspensioncushioning assembly may be advantageously used in combination with aninflatable member shown generaly as 96. This is a single arm orunbranched inflatable member having a uniform side to side dimensionexcept for anenlarged end compartment 98. The extension 99 of theenlarged compartment is shown with an elongated sir-fill tube 100mounted thereto. This tube has features similar to those previouslydescribed, including a removable friction cap 102. The end of the tubeopposite to the end closed with the fraction cap 102 is shown herein ashaving a flared end 104. This flared end is preferably heat sealed toone of the walls 106, 108 of the inflatable member as shown.

In the illustrated embodiment, the single arm inflatable member isdeposited within an envelope 1 12 so that extension 99 extends out ofthe top of the envelope when mounted within the shell. The illustratedenvelope is elastomeric as previously described, and is formed byfolding a sheet to form an inside fold 112 and an outside fold 114. Thesingle arm inflatable member is placed within the envelope by movingthrough top opening l 15. The inside fold 1 14 of the envelope may bebonded or otherwise fastened to the inside of the shell, and it ispreferred to bond the wall 108 of the single arm inflatable member tothe inside fold 112 of the envelope, such bonding being indicated in theview of FIG. 13 wherein inside fold 112 follows the contour of wall 118of the inflated member. It will be seen that in this embodiment theinflatable member and envelope assembly both size and cushion the shellor helmet against the temporal portions of the head, whereas theconventional suspension assembly merely cushions the top of the head.

Referring now to the views of FIG. I4-I9, a specialized inflatablemember is shown with means for providing suspension mounting within ashell. Such inflatable member likewise possesses the previouslydescribed features of cushioning and sizing. The inflatable member isshown generally as 116, and is seen to have a substantially T-shape witha horizontal arm 1 18 provided with anchor tabs 120 along one marginthereof. Each of the anchor tabs 120 is shown with a fastener opening121. Also shown are comer anchorizing tabs 122 with fastener openings123 in each tab. A vertical arm 124 is provided with an anchor tab 126shown with tapered sides. The vertical arm anchor tab 126 is likewiseprovided with a fastener opening 128. The vertical arm 124 is furthershown with angular straps I30 branching therefrom. Each strap isprovided with an anchor tab 132 provided with a fastener opening 134.

An elongated air-fill tube 136 is seen with a removable friction cap 138at its free end. The other end of the elongated airfrll tube isconnected to the end compartment of the vertical arm 124. In particular,the end of the tube communicates with the interiors of the plurality ofcommunicating compartments formed by a heavy support wall 140 and alighter distendable wall 142. The end of the tube passing through wall142 has a flared end 144 which is preferably heat sealed to wall 142.The heavy support wall 140 is preferably formed from the same materialas distendable wall 142, namely, a heat scalable plastic such as vinyl.Wall 140 is preferably several times thicker than distendable wall 142,and such wall is intended primarily for support rather than distensionfollowing inflation. The anchor tabs are shown as double layers formedfrom said support wall sealed to said distendable wall.

Looking now at FIGS. 16-18, the inflatable member is shown mountedwithin a shell 146, such member being preferably mounted within a foldedelastomeric envelope. The vertical arm 124 is shown extending along theinside curvature of the shell so that such arm is in position to followthe medial line of the crown portion of the head. The vertical arm isspaced from a major portion of the inside curvature of the shell toprovide a suspension mounting. Such mounting is obtained by fasteninganchor tabs 132 of straps 130 to the shell by means such as theillustrated double head rivet 147. This illustrated inflatable member ismounted within the shell by using fasteners such as double head rivets147 to secure anchor tabs 120, 122, and 128 to the shell, together withanchor tabs 132 ofstraps I30.

The inflatable member for suspension mounting may likewise be mountedwithin an elastomeric folded envelope in a way which was previouslydescribed. As shown, the vertical and horizontal arms are within afolded envelope having an inside fold 148 and an outside fold 150. Theend of the vertical arm 124 may extend out of said envelope so thatelongated air-fill tube I36 may be in position for inflation by theuser. The straps 130 may or may not be mounted within such an envelope.In general, the anchor tabs on the horizontal arm, the vertical arm, andthe straps will extend out of such envelope for mounting to the shell.It will be seen that such anchor tabs attain added rigidity by havingthe distendable wall bonded or sealed along all points to the heaviersupport wall. Such a structure leads to stronger anchoring of theinflatable member to the shell.

The view of FIG. 19 shows the shape which the inflatable member assumeswithin the shell. I! will be seen that horizontal arm 118 is in positionto size and cushion the temporal portions of the head, and that verticalarm 124 is in position to size and cushion the crown portion of thehead. The straps I30 lock the vertical arm 124 in spaced relation to thecurvature of the shell, which is not shown in this view. The view ofFIG. I9 shows the elongated tube 136 in lowered position so that theuser may inflate the same following removal of friction cap 138. Theview of FIG. 16 shows the elongated tube raised to inactive positioninside the shell. In use, the elongated air-fill tube 136 will be movedto this position following inflation of the member I16.

Still another alternative embodiment of the inflatable member isindicated in the view of FIG. 20. This member assurnes a general H-shapewherein vertical arms 150 and 152 flank a horizontal arm 154. Anelongated air-fill tube I56 is shown mounted to an end compartment ofthe vertical arm 152, said tube being fitted with a removable frictioncap 158. In use, arm I52 will follow a front inside curvature of theshell to size and cushion the front and temporal portions of the head.Vertical arm 150 will follow the back inside curvature of the shell tosize and cushion the back and rear temporal portions of the head. Thehorizontal arm 154 will follow the medial line of the crown portion ofthe head.

This inflatable member may be mounted within an elastomeric envelope, aspreviously described, and the inflatable member and envelope assemblymay be variously mounted within the shell as previously indicated. Theelongated air-fill tube 156 will be in position to be lowered at thefront of the face to active position for inflating the member. Followinginflation, the friction cap will be remounted and the tube will betucked between the inside of the shell and the head, as describedbefore. This inflatable member is provided with a plurality ofcommunicating compartments which are similar to previous embodimentsdisclosed herein. Likewise, this embodiment is formed by two side wallssealed along their peripheral edges, said walls being of substantiallyequal thicknesses, or one of the walls being a heavier support wall asdescribed in association with the views of FIGS. 14-19.

The inflatable member of this invention will preferably be mountedwithin the shell together with the elastomeric covering at least on thehead side of the member. Such elastomeric covering is preferably foamrubber, but may be of other materials having a density less than thedensity of the inflatable member, which may be thermoplastic vinylmaterial. When an envelope form is used, at least the head side of theenvelope should have the elastomeric covering.

The claims of the invention are now presented.

What is claimed is:

1. An inflatable cushioning and sizing means for mounting wihtin aprotective, substantially rigid head shell, including an inflatableT-shape member formed of one sidewall disposable towards the head sidewhen mounted in said shell, and an op posite sidewall disposable towardsthe interior of the rigid shell when mounted therein, one of saidsidewalls being substantially thicker than the other of the sidewalls,the thicker sidewall being a substantially non-distendable support wall,and a plurality of anchoring tabs being disposed along the peripheralmargin of said arms, and fastening means on each of said anchoring tabsfor mounting said tabs to the shell, said sidewalls sealed along theirperipheral edges, said T-shape member including a horizontal arm and avertical arm, said horizontal arm being sufficiently long to extendaround the opposite temporal portions of the user's head to about themedial line of the forehead, an elongated air-fill tube communicatingbetween said peripherally sealedsidewalls, said tube being sufficientlylong to reach a mouth of a user for inflation when mounted in saidshell, and a plurality of communicating compartments within the memberformed by discontinuous seal lines to provide communicating passagewaysbetween the compartments.

2. A protective headgear assembly including a substantially rigid headshell, a cushioning and sizing assembly mounted within said shell, saidassembly having a member formed of one sidewall disposable towards thehead side when mounted in said shell, and an opposite sidewalldisposable towards the interior of the rigid shell when mounted therein,said sidewalls sealed along their peripheral edges to form an arm, saidarm being sufficiently long to extend around the opposite temporalportions of the users head to about the medial line of the forehead, anelongated air-fill tube communicating between said peripherally sealedsidewalls, said tube being sufficiently long to reach a mouth of theuser for inflation when mounted in said shell, a removable closure forthe end of said air-fill tube, a plurality of communicating compartmentswithin the arm formed by discontinuous seal lines to providecommunicating air passageways between the compartments, and cushionmeans along both opposite sidewalls for cushioning the head of the userand for mounting the inflatable member to the inside of the shell.

3. A member as in claim 2 wherein said cushion means is a slightlyoversized envelope containing said member, said envelope having at leasta foamed elastomeric covering on the side of the member disposabletowards the head side, and means in said envelope to permit access tosaid member and said air-fill means.

4. An inflatable member and envelope assembly as in claim 4, whereinsaid envelope is sealed along its peripheral edges, except for an opentop which extends along the top edge of the envelope to thereby allowsaid inflatable member to be inserted through said open top and removedfrom said open top.

5. An inflatable member as in claim 2 wherein said member has a generalT-shape, a horizontal arm of said T-shaped member extending around theopposite temporal portions of the users head, a vertical arm of saidT-shaped member being sufficiently long to extend over the medial crownline of the user's head to about the forehead, and said cushion meanscovering the opposite sidewalls of at least said horizontal arm.

6. An inflatable member as in claim 2 wherein said member issubstantially an unbranched single arm, and said cushion meanssubstantially covering the opposite sidewalls of said arm.

7. An inflatable member as in claim 2, wherein said member is of ageneral H-shape, having two vertical arms to respectively contact theforehead and back of the head and an intermediate horizontal arm tocontact the medial line of the head, wherein said cushion means coverthe sidewalls of at least said vertical arms, and wherein said elongatedair-fill tube communicates between the walls of an end compartment inone of said vertical arms.

8. An inflatable member as in claim 1, wherein a plurality of supportingstraps are joined to said vertical arm, an anchoring tab being presentat the end of each of said straps, said anchoring tabs having side wallportions of the inflatable member bonded to each other to form a doublelayer tab, and fastening means on said tabs for anchoring the straps tothe shell, said straps being of a length so that the vertical arm isheld in spaced relationship to the inside curvature of the shell whenthe inflatable member is mounted within the shell.

9. An inflatable member and cushion means assembly as in claim 2, whichfurther includes said assembly mounted within a substantially rigidprotective headgear shell having an inside curvature which follows thetop and opposite sides of the head when worn, said shell having abottom, continuous curvilinear edge which defines extensions of theshell to protect the base at the back of the head, said cushion means onthe shell sidewall of the inflatable member being engageable with theinside shell curvature and being held thereto by a plurality of bondingpoints, and said arm of the inflatable member and cushion meansextending along the opposite sides of the head and terminatingsubstantially along the medial line of the forehead when worn.

10. An inflatable member, envelope and shell assembly as in claim 11,wherein said shell has ventilating areas on opposite sides above the armof the envelope mounted within the inside shell curvature.

l 1. An inflatable member, envelope and shell assembly as in claim 12,wherein said bottom, continuous curvilinear edge has a portion spacedabove the top of the ears, and lowered portions behind and in front ofthe ears when worn.

12. A protective headgear assembly as in claim 4, wherein saidelastomeric cushion means is a slightly oversized foamed rubberenvelope, said inflatable member is a vinyl thermoplastic, and saidair-fill means is an elongated tube having an air inlet end sealed by africtionally fitted removable cap.

13. An inflatable member as in claim 6, wherein saidcushion means is aslightly oversized envelope having at least a foamed elastomericcovering on the side of the member disposable towards the head side.

14. An inflatable member as in claim 8 wherein said cushion means is aslightly oversized envelope having at least a foamed elastomericcovering on the side of the member disposable towards the head side.

15. An inflatable member, envelope and shell assembly as in claim 11,wherein said cushion means is a slightly oversized foamed elastomericenvelope, and wherein said envelope and inflatable member have a generalT-shape, a horizontal arm extending around the temporal portions of thehead to about the forehead, and a vertical arm extending over the medialcrown line of the head to about the forehead.

16. An inflatable member, envelope and shell assembly as in claim 11,wherein said cushion means is a slightly oversized foamed elastomericenvelope, and wherein said envelope and inflatable member have a generalH'shape having two vertical arms to respectively contact the foreheadand back of the head, and an intermediate horizontal arm to contact themedial line of the head.

i I? t i i

1. An inflatable cushioning and sizing means for mounting wihtin aprotective, substantially rigid head shell, including an inflatableT-shape member formed of one sidewall disposable towards the head sidewhen mounted in said shell, and an opposite sidewall disposable towardsthe interior of the rigid shell when mounted therein, one of saidsidewalls being substantially thicker than the other of the sidewalls,the thicker sidewall being a substantially non-distendable support wall,and a plurality of anchoring tabs being disposed along the peripheralmargin of said arms, and fastening means on each of said anchoring tabsfor mounting said tabs to the shell, said sidewalls sealed along theirperipheral edges, said T-shape member including a horizontal arm and avertical arm, said horizontal arm being sufficiently long to extendaround the opposite temporal portions of the user''s head to about themedial line of the forehead, an elongated air-fill tube communicatingbetween said peripherally sealed sidewalls, said tube being sufficientlylong to reach a mouth of a user for inflation when mounted in saidshell, and a plurality of communicating compartments within the memberformed by discontinuous seal lines to provide communicating passagewaysbetween the compartments.
 2. A protective headgear assembly including asubstantially rigid head shell, a cushioning and sizing assembly mountedwithin said shell, said assembly having a member formed of one sidewalldisposable towards the head side when mounted in said shell, and anopposite sidewall disposable towards the interior of the rigid shellwhen mounted therein, said sidewalls sealed along their peripheral edgesto form an arm, said arm being sufficiently long to extend around theopposite temporal portions of the user''s head to about the medial lineof the forehead, an elongated air-fill tube communicating between saidperipherally sealed sidewalls, said tube being sufficiently long toreach a mouth of the user for inflation when mounted in said shell, aremovable closure for the end of said air-fill tube, a plurality ofcommunicating compartments within the arm formed by discontinuous seallines to provide communicating air passageways between the compartments,and cushion means along both opposite sidewalls for cushioning the headof the user and for mounting the inflatable member to the inside of theshell.
 3. A member as in claim 2 wherein said cushion means is aslightly oversized envelope containing said member, said envelope havingat least a foamed elastomeric covering on the side of the memberdisposable towards the head side, and means in said envelope to permitaccess to said member and said air-fill means.
 4. An inflatable memberand envelope assembly as in claim 4, wherein said envelope is sealedalong its peripheral edges, except for an open top which extends alongthe top edge of the envelope to thereby allow said inflatable member tobe inserted through said open top and removed from said open top.
 5. Aninflatable member as in claim 2 wherein said member has a generalT-shape, a horizontal arm of said T-shaped member extending around theopposite temporal portions of the user''s head, a vertical arm of saidT-shaped member being sufficiently long to extend over the medial crownline of the user''s head to about the forehead, and said cushion meanscovering the opposite sidewalls of at least said horizontal arm.
 6. Aninflatable member as in claim 2 wherein said member is substantially anunbranched single arm, and said cushion means substantially covering theopposite sidewalls of said arm.
 7. An inflatable member as in claim 2,wherein said member is of a general H-shape, having two vertical arms torespectively contact the forehead and back of the head and anintermediate horizontal arm to contact the medial line of the head,wherein said cushion means cover the sidewalls of at least said verticalarms, and wherein said elongated air-fill tube communicates between thewalls of an end compartment in one of said vertical arms.
 8. Aninflatable member as in claim 1, wherein a plurality of supportingstraps are joined to said vertical arm, an anchoring tab being presentat the end of each of said straps, said anchoring tabs having side wallportions of the inflatable member bonded to each other to form a doublelayer tab, and fastening means on said tabs for anchoring the straps tothe shell, said straps being of a length so that the vertical arm isheld in spaced relationship to the inside curvature of the shell whenthe inflatable member is mounted within the shell.
 9. An inflatablemember and cushion means assembly as in claim 2, which further includessaid assembly mounted within a substantially rigid protective headgearshell having an inside curvature which follows the top and oppositesides of the head when worn, said shell having a bottom, continuouscurvilinear edge which defines extensions of the shell to protect thebase at the back of the head, said cushion means on the shell sidewallof the inflatable member being engageable with the inside shellcurvature and being held thereto by a plurality of bonding points, andsaid arm of the inflatable member and cushion means extending along theopposite sides of the head and terminating substantially along themedial line of the forehead when worn.
 10. An inflatable member,envelope and shell assembly as in claim 11, wherein said shell hasventilating areas on opposite sides above the arm of the envelopemounted within the inside shell curvature.
 11. An inflatable member,envelope and shell assembly as in claim 12, wherein said bottom,continuous curvilinear edge has a portion spaced above the top of theears, and lowered portions behind and in front of the ears when worn.12. A protective headgear assembly as in claim 4, wherein saidelastomeric cushion means is a slightly oversized foamed rubberenvelope, said inflatable member is a vinyl thermoplastic, and saidair-fill means is an elongated tube having an air inlet end sealed by africtionally fitted removable cap.
 13. An inflatable member as in claim6, wherein said cushion means is a slightly oversized envelope having atleast a foamed elastomeric covering on the side of the member disposabletowards the head side.
 14. An inflatable member as in claim 8 whereinsaid cushion means is a slightly oversized envelope having at least afoamed elastomeric covering on the side of the member disposable towardsthe head side.
 15. An inflatable member, envelope and shell assembly asin claim 11, wherein said cushion means is a slightly oversized foamedelastomeric envelope, and wherein said envelope and inflatable memberhave a general T-shape, a horizontal arm extending around the temporalportions of the head to about the forehead, and a vertical arm extendingover the medial crown line of the head to about the forehead.
 16. Aninflatable member, envelope and shell assembly as in claim 11, whereinsaid cushion means is a slightly oversized foamed elastomeric envelope,and wherein said envelope and inflatable member have a general H-shapehaving two vertical arms to respectively contact the forehead and backof the head, and an intermediate horizontal arm to contact the medialline of the head.